Tomorrow is May 7th, which means POST/POP releases two new albums by two brilliant bands. Look at how lovely they look above!

There is this one from MODEL VILLAGE

and there is this one from NO CARS

To be honest, alot of them are already gone through preorder, so you will need to come to their shows, where there will be a few for sale.

Just off the top of my head, NO CARS are having an album launch party tomorrow (MAY 7th) at PAPER DRESS in Shoreditch. Check out their FB for details: https://www.facebook.com/pages/No-Cars/226406527390081. Also, HETTIE is supporting them so you will get a preview of new material before POST/POP releases an EP for her later this year.

MODEL VILLAGE play Cambridge on the 8th and London on May 10th at the Buffalo Bar. Details here: https://www.facebook.com/modelvillagers

ORDER BOTH ALBUMS HERE: https://postpoprecords.bandcamp.com/ (Or click on hettie’s face on the right)

Yes, thats what its called and I love them for it. You see, No Cars aren’t the type of band to shy away from japanese stereotypes. They are the type of band to take those very same Japanese Stereotypes and shove it down your kaiju-loving face.

So in this sophmore effort, No Cars have taken the general concept of the first record (YOKO EATS WHALES) – which is of course, Japanese girls being crazy, smashing things up, searching for Bowie, and how people are bitches if they don’t make you tea – and amplify it, creating a super-heightened version of reality where No Cars hang out with terribly abused sentient puppets (james anderson puppet), watch people having sex on hay bales (do re mi farming), celebrate how great cress is, finally! (cress) and also about how english guys are obsessed with japanese girls (jap trap). Are we? Probably. They always have such cool kicks.

For this release though, they now have a guy in the band called “Candy Tanaka” aka Will Kwerk, who brilliantly voices the pain of the aforementioned puppet (james anderson puppet) as the girls kick him down the street, for no real reason at all besides he is alive.

No Cars feel like that kind of band you would make up to impress some identikit hipster girl, before realising that as you are saying it out loud, you wish the band existed and the girl didn’t…. but they exist!

I am so pleased that they reworked “Tuna” on this album. It’s been a live favourite since day one and didnt make it on the debut album, but here is the video to it from the original version:

The new version on the album is twice the speed and twice the frolics, but you really have to seem them live to get the full effect.

Listen to the new songs below:

I’ve been obsessed with this band for years and lead singer Haruna needs to be held aloft as a fucking pioneer of trying to make people happy with music. The band is an inspiration to all other bands out there and if you are reading this and you are in a band yourself, listen to this album and convince your bandmates that you want to go in a Japanese direction. If they throw you out, start a No Cars cover band called “Really No Cars” or “Yes Cars“.

They are having an album launch party/gig at PAPER DRESS in london (http://paperdressvintage.co.uk/) on May 7th 2014 and not only will I be there, but HETTIE is supporting! She will be debuting tons of new songs so it really will be a great night. Did I mention it was FREE? You can buy the CDs and tapes from the band at the gig or…

Wise words my friends. Model Village are essentially the Avengers. A supergroup made up of ultra-talented musicians who sometimes get together and make beautiful music under the guise of a pop-folk band from Cambridge (Dan, Ian, Piers, Rachel, Kev, Kenny, Lily, Ellie and Mark are all current or former members of the residents’ committee.) Now I’m not saying any of them can fly per se, but THEIR SONGS SURE DO.*

“You Chose These Woes” is the second album from Model Village and its jam-packed full of songs that help you remember that folk needn’t be a dirty word. Some of the most catchy pop songs I’ve heard in a long time lies within and I’m particularly fond of “Walk it Off” as they came and performed it on my radio show. It was gorgeous-on-stilts and due to the power of the internet, here it is:

I just watched that and I forgot how special it was. Pardon my rather verite camera skills and my terrible joke at the end.

So the album came out earlier this year but not on the only format that counts… CASSETTE TAPE, so thats where I come in!

We have gone for MAY 8TH for the release date but you can even have a listen now. Watch my embedding skills…

You can buy it digitally and on CD through the band direct and you can preorder the tape right now…